Shares of Newell Brands Inc. dropped 3.0% in premarket trading Friday, after the consumer goods company, with brands including Rubbermaid, Sharpie, Paper Mate and Graco, reported second-quarter profit that beat expectations but revenue that missed and provided a downbeat outlook. Net income rose to $204 million, or 49 cents a share, from $197 million, or 46 cents a share, in the year-ago period. Excluding nonrecurring items, adjusted earnings per share of 57 cents topped the FactSet consensus of 47 cents. Sales fell 6.5% to $2.53 billion, just below the FactSet consensus of $2.54 billion, as the sales of the CH&S business, unfavorable currency movements and category and store exits weighed. Gross margin was about the same as a year ago at 32.6%, as pricing benefits offset “significant headwind” from inflation. Looking ahead, the company expects third-quarter adjusted EPS of 50 cents to 54 cents and sales of $2.39 billion to $2.50 billion, both below the FactSet consensus for EPS of 57 cents and for revenue of $2.57 billion. The company cut its 2022 adjusted EPS outlook to $1.79 to $1.86 from $1.85 to $1.93. The stock has dropped 10.6% over the past three months through Thursday, while the S&P 500 has slipped 1.4%.
Market Pulse Stories are Rapid-fire, short news bursts on stocks and markets as they move. Visit MarketWatch.com for more information on this news.